The future looks bright for Houston. While the economy is slowly digging its way out of a hole, some fields are making strides at a quicker pace. For those Houstonians looking to get ahead in the race to employment stability, consider careers in I.T., engineering and server administration.

The Mayor’s Office of Education Initiatives teamed up with SureScore, which recently acquired Campus2Careers, the largest student job board in Texas, to host a job fair on April 21 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel. Nathan Green, founder and president of Campus2Careers and vice president of SureScore, discusses the strength of the Houston job market.

“There are a lot of jobs here because of the abundance of companies. It is a Fortune 500 mecca. In addition, Houston has a lot of small businesses and startups. Cities like Austin and the Bay Area get a lot of attention for startups, but the eco-system here for startups is, from what I’ve seen, just as strong. With universities like Rice and the University of Houston producing a lot of engineering talent, it makes sense for companies to locate here. There is a lot of growth in ‘early jobs’ for fields that require technical skills but not a lot of experience.”

Are there any particular areas where you predict major job growth in the future?

“Engineering is the future of the economy, not just here in Houston but around the world. Houston is also a leader in the ‘health tech’ field. Health tech is a new term combining healthcare applications with advanced technology.”

For those making career choices, what professions do you recommend most right now?

“For a student or someone looking to make a transition, I recommend server administration. Everything now relies on the internet and email. All this depends on one thing and that’s servers, and it’s not going to change anytime soon. The advantage is that you can get involved within that industry with about six weeks of training. Anyone can do it, whether or not you have a strong background in a tech field.”

Marc Pembroke is a freelance writer covering all things Houston. His work can be found on Examiner.com.